a person from Pars (the middle-Persian word for Fars), a region now within the geographical boundaries of Iran, and is roughly the original homeland of the Persian people. The word Persia itself derives from Persis, the Greek form of Pars.
a member of the close-knit Zoroastrian community from/in India, and are descendants of people who, in the 8th century, emigrated to India from Persia to escape religious persecution. Indian census data (2001) records 69,601 Parsis in India, with a concentration in and around the city of Bombay. The number of Parsis worldwide is estimated to be less than 100,000. In 2004, the Indian government accorded the Parsi community the status of scheduled tribe which provides them with special protection and direct representation in Parliament. One famous Parsi was singer-musician Freddie Mercury.
In India, Parsis also erected "Towers of Silence" the buildings in which they leave their dead to be devoured by vultures - a practice which, strange though it may seem to modern western thinking, has the ancient religious purpose of affirming the equality of all men in death.
Although Parsis never surrendered their religious identity, or - in contrast to the ill fated Anglo-Indians - ever became reviled as sycophants of the British, they were eager to absorb British culture and education.
In view of the sharp decline in the Parsi population, this may seem complacent, but the Parsis have an impressive record of resilience and their adaptability is almost proverbial.
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